Category: nextbook

Here’s an interesting article from CNET that discusses the rumor of a small tablet kind of/sort of iPad from Apple. But with android tablets working so well for so many people is it really necessary for Apple to compete in this market?

I’ve posted about how much I love my Nextbook tablet more than once. For me, the Nextbook tablet was the alternative to an iPad…because I have three dedicated e-readers, an iPhone, and three working computers. I’m not even counting Tony’s notebook, his computers, or the two laptops. We work at home; we need to have backups at all times.

So the last thing I needed was to spend over five hundred dollars on an iPad that may or may not become obsolete within the next two years. For me, tech devices aren’t a hobby and they aren’t toys. I need to think about performance as well as cost at all times. I opted for the Nextbook tablet instead, mainly because it was cheaper and because I knew it wouldn’t be around for more than two years. I simply just assume nowadays that new devices will be launched and I’ll wind up looking for the next best deal. And I’ve been more than satisfied with the performance and the speed of the Nextbook. I even love reading on it. And it’s evident I’m not the only one who feels this way.

I (and presumably millions of other people) have been using the 7-inch Kindle Fire since late last year. It’s a great deal for $199, offering the basics that satisfy a lot of non-techie consumers: a good e-mail app, fast browser, Kindle reader, good movie viewer (I quit Netflix and went with Amazon’s service). And it has a good display, to boot.

Then, of course, we have the $199 Google Nexus 7, which got an Editor’s Choice rating from CNET Reviews.

I’m curious about this one myself. At this point, I don’t need it. But if I did it would probably be in my top ten choices.

Which brings us back to Apple. It already offers the 9.7-inch $399 iPad 2. Does Apple need to go lower, smaller than that?

I will admit that if Apple did come out with something very different from smaller androids I would seriously think about buying one. Although I’ve never been a huge Apple fan because of their philosophy, I have to be honest about the fact that I do prefer the quality of my iPhone over all other devices I own. As I said, I’m happy with my Nextbook. I would do it over again to save the money. But when I switch from using my iPhone to my Nextbook it’s a lot like switching from a well made luxury car to a basic economy car. In this sense, you get what you pay for. But then again we don’t all need well made luxury cars to get from point A to point B.

I posted about my next Nextbook Premium 8 tablet, here, a week or so ago.

I love it. I use it all the time to read, and for many other things. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a tablet.

But I just saw there’s a new Nextbook tablet: the Premium 9. At the time, I thought the Premium 8 was the newest model. I purchased it on HSN.com less than 2 months ago, during a special tech segment, for 199.00, and I thought I was getting a bargain.

According the the Nextbook web site, I clearly did get a bargain, because the Premium 8 is being sold for $299.00 over there. However, even at that price, I wouldn’t be disappointed. The few small complaints I have aren’t even worth mentioning.

And now the Premium 9, which is an inch bigger than the Premium 8, is being sold for $350.00.

I guess if you think about it, fifty bucks isn’t a lot more to pay for an extra inch. But my Premium 8 works very well and I have no regrets, and I’m more than happy with 8 inches. Most people would be. But if you are so inclined to have that extra inch, I’m sure the extra fifty bucks is worth it for the Premium 9.

I’ve posted about how much I love my Kobo e-readers more than once. I have the one with e-ink and the Kobo Lookbook. I love both, and I use both for different reasons at different times. The one with e-ink is easy to slip into a bag and take to the doctor’s office or anywhere I have to wait for a long time. The Lookbook is a little bigger, but not heavy, and I like to read at home on that one. Both are simple to use when it comes to downloading e-books and I’m a huge fan of Kobo’s web site.

But I wanted a tablet. And I didn’t want to spend what Apple is charging for the iPad…I have an iPhone, which I like, but I’ve never been completely sold on the concept that Apple is the be all and end all of all computers. I just didn’t drink the Kool Aide…that time. And I’ve seen my mother’s iPad and iPads that belong to friends. I like them. But again, I’m not willing to spend that kind of money for status reasons.

In the same respect, I’ve been looking for a tablet that will do almost everything the iPad does. And they are out there. It’s not something I’m going to use too often, and I tend to be conservative when it comes to spending money on items I want more than I need.

So I checked out the Nextbook Premium 8 tablet in a few places, and fell in love with it. I’ve had it for a few weeks now and I don’t have any major complaints. The one big complaint would be that I find the keyboard a little difficult to navigate. But that’s probably more about my skills than a reflection on the actual tablet. The reading experience is also good. But I will warn people who have never owned an e-reader and are thinking about getting one: if you’re just looking for a device that will let you read e-books, go for the Kobo or something like it in the beginning. You don’t need a tablet to read e-books. In fact, I find that the tablet is distracting when it comes to the overall reading experience.

In other words, speaking as someone who is not a techie and only wants to push a button to read an e-book, I would highly recommend the Nextbook Premium 8 to anyone looking for a tablet who doesn’t want to pay Apple’s prices. But I still go back to my dedicated e-reader to get the full impact of the personal, relaxing reading experience I have always cherished.